Editing Transport in Zambia (section)

==Railway==
{{main|Zambia Railways|Railway Systems of Zambia|Rail transport in Zambia}}

There is a total of 2,157&nbsp;km (2008) of railway track in Zambia.

===Principal lines===

* [[Zambia Railways]] Limited (ZRL) – {{RailGauge|1067mm}} narrow gauge, 846&nbsp;km [[Kitwe]]-[[Ndola]]-New [[Kapiri Mposhi]]-[[Kabwe]]-[[Lusaka]]-[[Livingstone, Zambia|Livingstone]]-[[Zimbabwe]] with several freight branches mostly in the [[Copperbelt]] totalling 427&nbsp;km including to [[DR Congo]]. Passenger services between Kitwe and Livingstone only.
* [[TAZARA Railway]] – {{RailGauge|1067mm}} narrow gauge, 891&nbsp;km in Zambia: New [[Kapiri Mposhi]]-[[Mpika]]-[[Kasama, Zambia|Kasama]]-[[Dar es Salaam]]

===Notable Branch lines===

* Maamba Colliery Railway, [[Choma, Zambia|Choma]] to [[Masuka, Gokwe South District|Masuka]], built to carry coal.
* The [[Mulobezi Railway]] (also known as Zambezi Sawmills Railway) is a narrow gauge line constructed to carry timber from [[Mulobezi]] to Livingstone. Has been reported at various times as defunct, currently listed in Railtracker (see 'Railway Network Map' below) but operating status not confirmed. 
* Mulungushi Commuter Line, later Njanji Commuter Line managed by ZRL, operated from 1991 to 1998 in Lusaka from the Chilenje-Libala to George townships (16&nbsp;km); bids invited by the privatisiation board in September 2005 for re-opening it.

=== Railway links with adjacent countries ===

* {{flagicon|Democratic Republic of the Congo}} [[Transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo|DR Congo]] – yes, [[Ndola]] to [[Sakania]] then Lubumbashi – {{RailGauge|1067mm}}, freight only. (For extensions and reconstruction beyond Lubumbashi see the [[Transport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo#Railways|DR Congo]] article).  The current operating status of Chililabombwe-DR Congo link not known.
* {{flagicon|Tanzania|}} [[Transport in Tanzania|Tanzania]] – yes, from [[Kapiri Mposhi]], border crossing at Nakonde, Zambia, to Dar es Salaam, TAZARA railway, passenger and freight –  {{RailGauge|1067mm}}
* {{flagicon|Malawi}} [[Transport in Malawi|Malawi]] – [[Chipata]]-[[Mchinji]] new link opened to traffic in 2010.
* {{flagicon|Mozambique}} [[Transport in Mozambique|Mozambique]] – no direct link, but indirectly to Beira and Maputo via Zimbabwe (no continuous passenger services).
* {{flagicon|Zimbabwe}} [[Transport in Zimbabwe|Zimbabwe]] – yes, from Livingstone via the [[Victoria Falls Bridge]] to [[Bulawayo]], freight only.
* {{flagicon|Botswana}} [[Transport in Botswana|Botswana]] – no direct link, indirectly via Zimbabwe (no continuous passenger services).
* {{flagicon|Namibia}} [[Transport in Namibia|Namibia]] – no direct link.
* {{flagicon|Angola}} [[Transport in Angola|Angola]] – no direct link – but indirectly via DR Congo to Benguela on the [[Benguela Railway]] – same gauge {{RailGauge|1067mm}}, while the railway was inoperable for many years because of the Angolan Civil War, it has been recently reconstructed.

===Proposed extensions===

==== 2007 ====
on 25 August 2007.<ref>[http://railwaysafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1875&Itemid=35 "Chipata Railway"], ''Railways Africa'', Friday, 2 November 2007.</ref>
* A branch line from [[Nseluka]] on the [[TAZARA Railway]] to [[Mpulungu]] on [[Lake Tanganyika]] has been proposed.<ref name="RRA">[http://railwaysafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1874&Itemid=35 Railways Africa – EXTENDING BEYOND CHIPATA<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
*A connection from the Chipata Railway when completed to the TAZARA line at [[Mpika]] has been mooted.<ref name="RRA"/> This could be controversial as it would pass through or between the world-famous [[Luangwa Valley]] national parks. A more southerly route, linking [[Eastern Province, Zambia|Eastern Province]] towns such as [[Katete]] and [[Petauke]] and going to the TAZARA line at [[Serenje]] would by-pass the parks.

==== 2006 ====

Zambia's North-West Extension – 8 February 2006 – Preparatory work is going forward on Zambia's proposed new north-western extension railway from [[Chingola]] to [[Solwezi]], estimated to cost about $US235m.  The area has excellent mining potential which cannot be exploited effectively without rail facilities.  The route has been surveyed and the implications of compensating land owners are being worked out.<ref name="RailwaysAfrica_2011-05-31">
{{Cite news|url=http://www.railwaysafrica.com/blog/2011/05/zambian-north-west-railway-2/
|title=ZAMBIAN NORTH-WEST RAILWAY|author=Enoch Kavindele
|publisher=Railways Africa|location=Johannesburg, South Africa|date=31 May 2011
|access-date=8 May 2012}}</ref>

Australian and American interests are examining the project and the [[Development Bank of Southern Africa]] (DBSA) may help with finance.  The [[United States Trade and Development Agency]] (USTDA), another prospective source of funding, is also looking at the scheme.  Hopes have been expressed that the new line might eventually be extended to [[Mwinilunga]] and even to join Angola's [[Benguela Railway]] without relying on the DR Congo link, to restore what was until the 1970s Zambia's main route for exporting copper and other metals. In April 2012, according to newspaper reports, the Zambian government "has issued a permit to North-West Railway Company (NWR) for construction of the 554&nbsp;km railway line from Chingola to Jimbe on the Angolan border".<ref name="TimesZ_2012-04-10">{{Cite news
|url=http://www.times.co.zm/?p=4052|title=Govt okays North-West Railway
|author=Maimbolwa Mulikelela|date=10 April 2012|publisher=Times of Zambia
|access-date=8 May 2012}}</ref>
<ref name="AfricaReview">{{Cite news|url=http://www.africareview.com/Business+++Finance/New+Zambia+railway+investors+get+green+light/-/979184/1384202/-/vw95tw/-/index.html
|title=New Zambia $1bn railway investors get green light|date=11 April 2012
|author=ZHINHUA|publisher=Africa Review|location=Nairobi, Kenya
|access-date=8 May 2012}}</ref>

The Angolan transport ministry plans to build a line branching off the Benguela Railway at [[Luacano]] and entering Zambia from [[Macango]],<ref name="Mintrans_rede-ferroviaria-nacional">[http://www.transportes.gv.ao/reabilitacao-da-rede-ferroviaria-nacional Details of lines to be rehabilitated and newly built at the web site of the Angolan transport ministry] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140419031735/http://www.transportes.gv.ao/reabilitacao-da-rede-ferroviaria-nacional |date=19 April 2014 }}</ref> thus avoiding [[Democratic Republic of Congo|DR Congo]] territory. The establishment of this direct link was also subject of talks during the visit of an Angolan delegation to Lusaka in May 2012. "The Benguela Railway will improve relations between the two countries as well as transportation of goods. It is encouraging that the railway on the Angolan side will reach the border by next year," said Keith Mukata, Zambian Deputy Minister for Commerce, Trade, and Industry.<ref name="TimesZ_2012-05-09">
{{Cite news|url=http://www.times.co.zm/?p=8706|title=Angola ready to 'oil' Zambia|publisher=Times of Zambia
|location=Lusaka, Zambia|date=9 May 2012|access-date=9 May 2012}}</ref>

=== Stations ===
{{Main|Railway stations in Zambia}}

==== Principal towns served by rail====

===== Existing =====
{|
|-
|width="120"|• [[Lusaka]] – capital
|width="120"|• [[Kabwe]]||• [[Ndola]]
|-
|• [[Kafue]]||• [[Kitwe]]||• [[Chililabombwe]] – freight only
|-
|• [[Mazabuka]]||• [[Kapiri Mposhi]]||• [[Luanshya]] – freight only
|-
|• [[Choma, Zambia|Choma]]||• [[Mpika]]||• [[Chingola]] – freight only
|-
|• [[Livingstone, Zambia|Livingstone]]||• [[Kasama, Zambia|Kasama]]||• [[Mufulira]] – freight only
|-
|• [[Mulobezi]]|| [[Ndola]] || 
|}